The Noodle Box - Kitsilano

My friend and I visited The Noodle Box located on 4th Avenue in Kitsilano. The Noodle Box serves fusion Asian dishes, mainly noodles. I went to the place on a Saturday morning, when it was fairly empty.

Here is the shot of their menu. Besides noodles, they also serve several different curry dishes and rice dishes.

Both of us ordered noodles, and we were told to let them know how spicy we wanted our noodles to be.

They have a "guide to spiciness" on the back of their menu. Since this was a fusion noodle shop, I didn't think Medium would be too spicy. Afterall, in the description, it says "Closer to a "western" hot." Although it's debatable what a "western" hot would be, being an Asian, I mindlessly assumed that that would translate as "moderately spicy" for me, and as I will mention later on, I was wrong! Notice they have "Suicide Hot?" I kind of want to try it! But just one spoonful.


Noodle Box Chili Plum

Within a few minutes (very quick!), our food was ready. My friend ordered the Noodle Box Chili Plum with chicken (medium spiciness as well), which came to be $10.75 including tax. A little expensive for a bowl of noodles, don't you think? At least the vegetables included in the bowl tasted very very fresh, and the chicken was good as well. My friend found the sauce to be quite spicy, but because of the amount of vegetables and sweetness of the sauce, he still found the dish to be manageable.


Black Bean and Garlic

 I ordered the Black Bean and Garlic with prawns which was $11.75 including tax. The sauce was spicy. I always thought I was pretty good with handling spicy food, but this time, it was a little difficult, especially because the sauce was salty as well. Usually, if it's just spicy, it's more manageable, but when it's salty and spicy at the same time, the flavour can become intense. And it was not just salty, but very salty. I did like the prawns and the vegetables though, as they were very juicy and fresh. As for the noodles, I didn't really like the Hokkein noodles, as they weren't as firm and chewy as I would've liked them to be. However, that may just be the way Hokkein noodles are supposed to be prepared as.

Overall, I didn't like the Black Bean and Garlic noodle. I think it's just not the right dish for me. When I tried some of my friend's Noodle Box Chili Plum, I really liked it, so I think I just happened to choose something that I don't like when there are other options I would've liked a lot more.

My friend, who recommended this restaurant, told me that this is a popular noodle shop, known for its use of fresh ingredients and effort to create nutritional dishes. For someone who eats out often like me, it's good to know of restaurants like this one that serve healthy and fresh food quickly. I think the restaurant will be great for people who are looking to pick up lunch or dinner quickly without having to resort to typical fast food restaurants.

I would visit The Noodle Box again if I am in the area, to try maybe their curry dishes or their satay lunch box, which I eyed before ordering the Black Bean and Garlic. I just need to keep in mind to order in Mild-Medium or even Mild + spiciness (1 and 2 levels less spicier than Medium, which I ordered this time)!

1867 W 4th Avenue
Vancouver BC

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